Jews and Muslims Relation

I have an online American Jews friend. The first time we met a few years back was when I was zealously trying any of internet tools available. In brief, I met her online through Yahoo Chat and still continue through YM. Once she knows that I am a Muslim (I was and still am always telling anyone I meet that I am an Indonesian Muslim), she asks me: “What do you think about Jews? Do you believe in prejudice?” By then, I thought that her question was about Jews-Muslims relation. I was wrong.

She told me that common American Jews are put to blame for whatever wrongs happen in the US. American Jews are the victims of prejudice. She gives me some examples. I’m amazed and a bit shocked. I dont know whether it’s true. But she looks an honest woman to me. But if that’s the case, it’s an unknown revelation to the outside world. What we know the Jews in US enjoys the priveleges that non-Jews minority can only dream of.

Then she asks me about my personal opinion.

Indonesian Blogs that I Frequently Visit

Aug 23, 2006
Despite the fact that the Indonesian blogsphere is not as diverse as its culture and traditions, you’ll find that the country’s bloggers have tried to passionately deliver their voice in various topics and approaches.

Written in two languages, English and Bahasa (to which its neighboring Southeast Asian visitors such as Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei which can speak Malay can catch up with), Indonesian bloggers have presented their own style and character in their blogs.
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61st Anniversary of Independent Indonesia

August 17, 2006 is the 61st anniversary of Indonesia’s independence day. We celebrate this day with joy every year. The context of celebration is we have freed ourselves from the colonialism, occupation and justice inequality of one country (Netherlands) against another (Indonesia). We gain this freedom not for free; it’s a hard-fought and hard-earned struggle.. Some lessons we learn after 61 years we drove the Dutch away from Indonesia?

The idea among common people to resist and drive the colonialist and occupier away is that (a) our country is rich with natural resources and we got nothing as the Dutch robbed them all; (b) all people will get equal opportunity to education, the mother of all progress and development.

The facts after 61 years: (a) we are still poor and is still named developing, some say underdeveloped country with continuous “awards” as one of the most corrupt country in the world.; many if not all the so-called natural resources are also subcontracted to the MNC’s company; (b) education subsidy is sinking further which almost close the opportunity for the poor to have decent education to enable them to make decent living.

President SBY and BBM

the BBM’s (petrol, gasoline, etc) hike, and all price in the market follow suit predictably make ordinary indonesian’s life more miserable. with most poor people earn less than a dollar a day, their life turn from bad to worse.

who to blame? the first answer is President SBY (susilo bambang yudhoyono). now, some politician, activist and political commentators start whispering as to whether in present system–direct elected president–the incumbent president can be impeached? and if so will he be impeached? many say no. but some hi-fi politicians start saying ‘yes’.
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15th Birthday of Internet

August 5 fifteen years ago a baby named internet was born. It’s then more known as world wide web. So, Saturday August 2006 might be celebrated by the internet enthusiasts as the hallmarks of new world. A kind of world that is entirely unthinkable and unimaginable by those who died before it. No body before that day would ever think that a few years after its birth, things change very dramatically. For the better or the worse.

I myself would never ever think before that day that I would be able to communicate to and converse with people and community beyond my visible and my physical reach: my neighbours and my colleagues.

It is simply unimaginable then what I have had today through internet. And I think millions of people out there have shared the same feeling. And I think you’d agree with me that had there been a nomination for what kind of things/people that influence this world the most during the last two decades, internet would have been the first and the sole winner.

How would you remember this day is of your own choice. But let me celebrate it my way by quoting a good piece from an Indian newspaper which highligting the short history of internet. Here’s the excerpt:

On August 6 in 1991, Tim Berners Lee came up with a programme to link and browse the web.

Though the Internet had come into existence much earlier, his software aimed to allow links to be made to any information anywhere. Berners Lee also made available all files necessary for people to replicate his invention. Thus was born the era of the world wide web. Inspired after a meeting with Berners Lee, Stanford University scientist Paul Kunz came up with the first web server in the US. Together, these two components constituted Americaâ??s first website. Then came the dotcom boom.

The later half of the 1990s witnessed websites like Amazon and Google make a foray into the webworld. Internet Explorer and Hotmail came into being during 1995 and 1996, respectively. One smart individual figured out a way to share his music files and created Napster in May 1999.

By 2000, the dotcom fever lost heat, and one saw a series of websites shut shop. Today, the web probably means everything to us. Buying, selling, chatting, video. the list of its utilities has no end.

Well, how do you celebrate the internet day?